M’S Can’t Promote New Lottery Game Will Help Fund Stadium, But Use Of Name Not Allowed

New state lottery scratch games created to help raise money for a $320 million baseball stadium probably won’t feature the Seattle Mariners.

Though the stadium is being built for the Mariners, Major League Baseball is expected to bar the state from using the Mariners name, symbol or images of players to promote the scratch games.

Lottery officials also expect to be barred from selling tickets during Mariners games at the Kingdome or the new baseball stadium, slated to open in 1999.

Lottery officials are to meet with Mariners’ owners Nov. 13, but neither side is hopeful that the team will be of much help in promoting or selling the scratch game tickets.

“It’s not us - it’s Major League Baseball,” Mariners spokeswoman Leigh McMillan said.

“Major League Baseball does not allow the use of club names or logos in conjunction with lottery tickets and lottery games. They are concerned about being affiliated with gambling.”

The state Lottery Commission, meeting in south Seattle Friday, said it hopes to find some other way of tying the new scratch games to baseball in order to attract Marines fans.

The first two stadium scratch games are to debut Feb. 19, just before the start of spring training.

The Legislature and the Metropolitan King County Council last month agreed to pay for the new stadium through a combination of state and county money and $45 million from the Mariners. The state expects to come up with about half its share through the sale of scratch tickets; the county will raise taxes on restaurants and taverns, rental cars and Kingdome admission tickets.